with his wife and a stranger, engaged in the type of conversation he could never have imagined growing
up. It was a few minutes past ten o’clock in the morning, and he’d been back in New York for only a few days. His tour had
taken him to twenty-some different cities, while Kim worked as a paralegal at a Wall Street law firm.
“I felt…,” he said again.
When the clock struck one a.m., Steve went outside to stand on the back porch. The blackness of the night had given way to
the purple light of the moon, making it possible to see up and down the beach. He hadn’t seen her in sixteen hours and was
concerned, if not quite worried. He trusted she was smart and careful enough to take care of herself.
Okay, maybe he was a little worried.
And despite himself, he wondered if she was going to vanish tomorrow, the same way she had today. And whether it would be
the same story day after day, all summer.
Spending time with Jonah had been like finding special treasure, and he wanted to spend time with her as well. He turned from
the porch and went back inside.
As he took his seat at the piano, he felt it again, the same thing he’d told the marriage counselor as he’d sat on the couch.
He felt empty.
10
R onnie
F or a while, a larger group had gathered at Bower’s Point, but one by one, they’d taken off until only the five regulars remained.
Some of the others had been okay, a couple were even kind of interesting, but then the liquor and beer started taking effect,
and everyone but Ronnie thought they were a lot funnier than they really were. After a while, it got kind of boring and familiar.
She was standing alone at the water’s edge. Behind her, near the bonfire, Teddy and Lance were smoking, drinking, and occasionally
throwing fireballs at each other, Blaze was slurring her words and hanging all over Marcus. It was getting late, too. Not
by New York standards—back home, she didn’t show up at the clubs until midnight—but considering what time she’d gotten up,
it had been a long day. She was tired.
Tomorrow, she was going to sleep in. When she got home, she was going to hang towels or a blanket over the curtain rod; hell,
she’d nail them to the wall if she had to. She had no intention of spending the whole summer rising with the farmers, even
if she was going to spend the day at the beach with Blaze. Blaze had surprised her with the suggestion, and it actually sounded
kind of appealing. Besides, there wasn’t much to do otherwise. Earlier, after they’d left the diner, they’d walked through
most of the nearby shops—including the music store, which was very cool—and afterward, they’d gone to Blaze’s house to watch
The Breakfast Club
while her mom was at work. Sure, it was an eighties movie, but Ronnie still loved it and had seen it at least a dozen times.
Even though it was dated, it felt surprisingly real to her. More real than what was going on here tonight—especially since
the more Blaze drank, the more she ignored Ronnie and clung to Marcus.
Ronnie already neither liked nor trusted Marcus. She had pretty good radar when it came to guys, and she sensed there was
something “off” about him. It was like there was something
missing
in Marcus’s eyes when he talked to her. He said the right things—no more crazy suggestions about heading to Florida, at least,
and by the way, how weird was that?—but the more time she spent with him, the more he creeped her out. She didn’t like Teddy
or Lance, either, but Marcus… she got the vibe that acting normal was simply a game he played so he could manipulate people.
And Blaze…
It was strange being in her house earlier, because it seemed so normal. It stood in a quiet cul-de-sac and had bright blue
shutters and an American flag that fluttered from the porch. Inside, the walls were painted cheery colors, and a vase of fresh
flowers stood on the dining room table. The place was clean, but not
up. It was a few minutes past ten o’clock in the morning, and he’d been back in New York for only a few days. His tour had
taken him to twenty-some different cities, while Kim worked as a paralegal at a Wall Street law firm.
“I felt…,” he said again.
When the clock struck one a.m., Steve went outside to stand on the back porch. The blackness of the night had given way to
the purple light of the moon, making it possible to see up and down the beach. He hadn’t seen her in sixteen hours and was
concerned, if not quite worried. He trusted she was smart and careful enough to take care of herself.
Okay, maybe he was a little worried.
And despite himself, he wondered if she was going to vanish tomorrow, the same way she had today. And whether it would be
the same story day after day, all summer.
Spending time with Jonah had been like finding special treasure, and he wanted to spend time with her as well. He turned from
the porch and went back inside.
As he took his seat at the piano, he felt it again, the same thing he’d told the marriage counselor as he’d sat on the couch.
He felt empty.
10
R onnie
F or a while, a larger group had gathered at Bower’s Point, but one by one, they’d taken off until only the five regulars remained.
Some of the others had been okay, a couple were even kind of interesting, but then the liquor and beer started taking effect,
and everyone but Ronnie thought they were a lot funnier than they really were. After a while, it got kind of boring and familiar.
She was standing alone at the water’s edge. Behind her, near the bonfire, Teddy and Lance were smoking, drinking, and occasionally
throwing fireballs at each other, Blaze was slurring her words and hanging all over Marcus. It was getting late, too. Not
by New York standards—back home, she didn’t show up at the clubs until midnight—but considering what time she’d gotten up,
it had been a long day. She was tired.
Tomorrow, she was going to sleep in. When she got home, she was going to hang towels or a blanket over the curtain rod; hell,
she’d nail them to the wall if she had to. She had no intention of spending the whole summer rising with the farmers, even
if she was going to spend the day at the beach with Blaze. Blaze had surprised her with the suggestion, and it actually sounded
kind of appealing. Besides, there wasn’t much to do otherwise. Earlier, after they’d left the diner, they’d walked through
most of the nearby shops—including the music store, which was very cool—and afterward, they’d gone to Blaze’s house to watch
The Breakfast Club
while her mom was at work. Sure, it was an eighties movie, but Ronnie still loved it and had seen it at least a dozen times.
Even though it was dated, it felt surprisingly real to her. More real than what was going on here tonight—especially since
the more Blaze drank, the more she ignored Ronnie and clung to Marcus.
Ronnie already neither liked nor trusted Marcus. She had pretty good radar when it came to guys, and she sensed there was
something “off” about him. It was like there was something
missing
in Marcus’s eyes when he talked to her. He said the right things—no more crazy suggestions about heading to Florida, at least,
and by the way, how weird was that?—but the more time she spent with him, the more he creeped her out. She didn’t like Teddy
or Lance, either, but Marcus… she got the vibe that acting normal was simply a game he played so he could manipulate people.
And Blaze…
It was strange being in her house earlier, because it seemed so normal. It stood in a quiet cul-de-sac and had bright blue
shutters and an American flag that fluttered from the porch. Inside, the walls were painted cheery colors, and a vase of fresh
flowers stood on the dining room table. The place was clean, but not
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